Lucky
by antisocialgod
Summary: JJ always thought that Emily would be very good with children; she just didn't realize the reason for that was because the brunette already had children of her own.
1. Chapter 1

Washington, D.C.

Winter, 2008.

A young blond girl ran on the snow covered park. It was a Sunday afternoon, a few days before Christmas, but somehow the park was almost empty.

Dressed in a black outfit, her golden curls stood out, under her . Chocolate brown eyes sparkled mischievously as she bent down, grabbing a handful of snow in leather gloves, and turned around, aiming for the little brunette a few feet away.

The other girl, dressed in a similar outfit, also black, oblivious to the world around her, looked up just in time to see the snow ball flying her way, hitting her on the stomach and disappearing into her clothes. She took her time to glare at her attacker, who was too busy having a fit of laugh to even notice the deadly look, before she grabbed a ball and threw against the girl, giggling as the ball hit the blond on the shoulder.

Smiling, the small brunette made a bee-line to the other girl, blue eyes lit in excitement, as she whispered something on the blond's ear, before grabbing another handful of snow, her act mirrored by her companion. Slowly, they made their way towards the bench, where an older woman sat, apparently too busy reading a book.

Trying to control their giggles, the two girls counted together until three, before throwing the snowballs at the woman in front of them.

Noticing the attack, the seemingly oblivious woman, leaned a bit to the side, and dodged away from the balls, making the two girls pout.

"That's not fair, mommy!" the blond one said, marching to sit on the bank, arms crossed and legs bouncing.

"What isn't fair, Alex?" the older woman asked, an amused smile playing on her face.

"You moved away!" the little brunette answered, plopping on the other side of the bench.

"I certainly didn't!" the woman exclaimed in mock hurt.

"You did too!" both girls said at the same time, faces holding the exact same expression.

They weren't that different. Of course, there was the fact that they _were_ twins, but still. Despite the blatant difference on the hair color, one had a dark hair, as completely opposed to the other, who's hair had a golden color, they were practically the same. The same ivory skin, with very little freckles, almost unnoticeable. The warm smiles, in contrast to the aristocratic face.

Strong expressions blended perfectly with their child's face. Sure, there was innocence, a child's most possessed virtue, but there was also something that showed that those girls weren't normal kids. That they didn't have a regular upbringing. Not in a bad way, no. They had everything a child could possibly dream of, but there were expectations. Their eyes, another of the few differences between them, were the window to their soul. Every single emotion reflected in bright blue and dark brown eyes. And of course, there was their personality. The same as any other woman of their family before them, strong and secure, even in the young age of 7.

"Well, it's not my fault you two have a terrible aim!" teased the woman between them. Her face held the same expressions as her children, but there was of course, the weight of a lifetime. The experiences, and it weren't few; some good, some bad, some she couldn't remember, all reflected in her beautiful face. Light red lips, that stood out in the pale face, inviting and mysterious at the same time. Strong dark eyes, that despite everything they'd seen, never lost its glow. Black hair falling to her shoulders, drawing the perfect picture. To say that the woman was beautiful, would be an understatement.

"But you moved!" Alex, the blond girl, said, throwing her hands in the air. "It was going to hit you!"

"Then I suppose I had a very good reason to move, didn't I?" the older brunette smirked, as her daughters threw her a dark look. "It's cold, I wouldn't want my clothes all wet."

"Very funny, mommy." the young brunette muttered under her breath.

"I heard that, Sophie." she said, but her tone was playful. "How about I make up to you two by taking you to the mall?"

The twins' face lit up in excitement.

"Christmas shopping?!" Sophie asked, hopping off the bench. Her mother nodded, grinning.

"Does that mean we can get a new iPod?!" inquired the blond girl, her legs swinging while she clapped her hands in excitement.

"What happened to the ones I got for you two last Christmas?" raising an eyebrow, the older woman looked between her daughters.

"Too small!" "We need more space!" they shouted at the same time, making their mom shake her head, amused.

"I suppose we could get new ones." she sighed, rolling her eyes. Standing up, she took each girl's hands and started to walk outside the park. "Now let's go. Your Grandmother won't be very pleased if we're late for dinner."

"I thought Grandmother was in France." Alex stated, as they reached the car. Sophie nodded by her side.

"Well, she was." her mother agreed. "But you two know your Grandmother. There's no way she would ever cancel the weekly Prentiss' dinner. Besides, I think she brought presents."

~*~

East Allegheny, Pennsylvania.

Winter, 2008.

The black SUV came to a halt in front of the familiar house, and the blond driver hopped out of it, taking her time to breathe in the cold air of December.

It felt weird being home after so long. Well, if she was being true to herself, _home_ wasn't really what she would call. Sure she grew up in that place, she knew everyone in there; in a city of nearly 3k, it was hard not to, but she never felt like she truly belonged there. Thus, the reason why she had left.

In the years after her departure, her parents and sister had always flew to visit her in Virginia. The place she now called home. But for some reason, when her father said he didn't want to leave that year, she agreed to come back to the place that haunted her for so long.

It wasn't like she hated the small town; she just didn't like it. It always felt like every single person in that city scrutinized her for leaving, for wanting something better than what she was offered in East Allegheny.

Sighing and kicking the snow, she made her way towards the entrance door and rang the bell. She had a key somewhere, after all this had been her house for a long time, but she just didn't want to go through all of her bags trying to find it.

The moment the door opened, she felt herself being tackled to the floor.

"JayJ!" screamed a teenager as she saw the other blond. "Oh, sorry."

Lifting herself up, she then proceeded to help the older woman getting up, who pulled her in a hug.

"I see the training is doing you good, Ali." She said, rubbing her back. "Too bad for me, huh?"

"Well, it's not my fault you can't handle it anymore, sis." the younger one teased, as they walked into the house. "What kind of FBI agent are you if you can't even handle being tackled?! Tsk, tsk, tsk."

"The kind of FBI Agent that doesn't get tackled all the time." JJ replied, smirking.

"Lame!" her sister snorted, pulling her to the kitchen. "Mom, Dad! JJ's home!"

The older blond cringed at how the word 'home' floated easily through her sisters tongue. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and opened them again, a smile plastered in her features. Despite not liking the place, she _did_ love her family more than anything.

"Jaybird!" the deep voice came from behind the blond, and the smile in her face grew wider as her father came into view. Running to his arms, she fought the urge to tackle him, just as her sister had done with her moments before.

"Dad!" she nearly shouted, hugging the man tightly. "I missed you so much."

"Ah, I missed you too, Jaybird." he said, ruffling her hair affectionately. "How was the trip?"

"Uneventful," JJ shrugged. "Where's mom?"

"Probably stuck in the kitchen." The younger blond answered, snickering. JJ laughed, and rolled her eyes, just before another figure showed up on the kitchen's door.

"I heard that, young lady." the older woman said, making her way towards her older daughter. Pulling her in a hug, she continued. "I'm glad you're here, sweetie. Mom's making a special dinner."

"Of course! Do I get special dinner? Of course not. I'm here all the time. Why make _me _a special dinner?!" the teenager exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. "No fair."

Smirking, JJ ruffled her sister's hair, very aware of the fact that the younger girl hated that. "Next time, try to be the older sister."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter II**

_Christmas Eve,_

_Washington D.C._

Emily Prentiss stood awkwardly in front of the white mansion, her feet moving up and down as she waited for the door to open; Sophie and Alex both suddenly very interested in something on their dresses.

It wasn't that they didn't want to be there. Despite everything, they did. Every Sunday the last remaining women of the Prentiss family gathered for dinner; it was tradition. Sometimes, when the BAU unit of the FBI was asked to help in some case in a different town, Emily would travel with her team, and therefore, miss the dinners. Her daughters didn't have an excuse, so they couldn't do that. They didn't mind; they loved their Grandmother.

However, Ambassador Prentiss was also feared.

It wasn't in a bad way; it was more out of respect than anything.

It had always been like that in the Prentiss family. Emily knew that her mother was just like her when she was her age, and her daughters could see how she was with her mom. They didn't have a bad relationship. Perhaps not the most caring one, that part was true, but they did love each other. Compartmentalization was something those women learned in a very young age. Emily didn't raise her daughters to be as emotionless as her mother had raised her, but there were some things she couldn't change; some things she knew would be good for them.

And there was the fact that they spent a lot of time with their Grandmother, so they were bound to the Prentiss' upbringing. Which is the reason why they were always so nervous about the dinners.

"Mommy, stop." Sophie said, rolling her blue eyes at her mother. They were so deep, and ever so often, for the past two years, whenever Emily looked at them, another pair of blue eyes, just as deep as the one staring at her, invaded her mind, making her smile inwardly.

Before she could reply, the door swung open, revealing the figure of the Prentiss' butler, Gerald.

"Good evening Miss Emily." he said, helping her take off her coat. Then he proceeded to help the young girls. "Young Miss Sophie, young Miss Alexis. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, Gerald!" the twins answered excitedly making the man smile.

"Happy Christmas, Gerald." Emily said, nodding. "I take mother is in the living room?"

"Precisely, miss Emily." he answered. "She awaits."

"Okay, thank you." the brunette said, making her way through the big foyer, her daughters right by her side.

It was weird to see the Prentiss' household so empty. Emily's memories were filled with so many images of the many Christmas parties she had had as a kid, and there wasn't a single one where the house wasn't packed with strangers; politicians, wealthy people and important members of society.

Emily couldn't help but appreciate her mother's gesture.

Ever since Sophie and Alex were born, Christmas and other special events became something more familiar. There were no strangers, only them. Celebrating as the family that they were. Sure, the brunette missed that as a kid, but she was just thankful that her daughters didn't have to endure what she had had to. It had never been terrible, after all, there _were_ some kids of her age whenever one a party was thrown, but she always wanted to know what it was like to celebrate only with her family.

She was glad that she could have that now. And even more so, she was glad her daughters could have that.

There was only one thing that would make Emily's Christmas perfect. Or better yet, _someone._ But she knew she couldn't have that. She knew she couldn't have _her._ The woman who haunted her dreams every night; her teammate, colleague, best friend, secret crush, platonic love. _Her._

Jennifer Jareau.

At that moment, Emily thought, the blond was probably having dinner with her family, unaware of the fact that the brunette would give anything to be by her side. She hated feeling so impotent when it came to the other woman. She hated loving her without being able to do anything about it.

Sighing, she walked into the living room, to find her mother sitting on the fancy couch; a book in her hand, a glass of wine on the other. The big room was decorated properly; some colorful lights hanging on the walls, nothing very extravagant, of course. Above the fireplace, four Christmas stockings were hanging - each of them containing the name of each woman: Alex, Sophie, Emily, Elizabeth – and in the corner, the big tree, packed with gifts underneath.

"Mother." Emily said, making her presence known. Her mother looked up, and closed her book, a small and almost unnoticeable smile flashing on her face.

"Emily, dear. Merry Christmas." she said, getting up to hug the younger woman, placing a kiss on her cheek. Then she turned to the side, and leaned down, so she could be eye-to-eye with the twins. Now, there was definitely a smile on her face. "And how are my favorite granddaughters this Christmas?"

"We're your only granddaughters, Grandmother." Alex said, smiling as she moved forward, wrapping her little arms around the older woman. "Happy Christmas."

"Happy Christmas, Grandmother." Sophie said, mirroring her sister's act.

"Could I get you and little Miss Sophie and Alex, something to drink, Miss Emily?" Gerald asked, as he returned to the room.

"I'll have a glass of wine, Gerald. Thank you." she said, as she took a sit on the opposite couch, across from her mother.

"Can we drink Dr. Pepper, mommy?" Alex asked, as Sophie nodded by her side.

"Just because it's Christmas, don't get used to it." Emily said, but the smile in her face didn't match her tone.

The girls knew very well that they weren't allowed to drink soda before dinner, but they always took advantage of the special occasions because on those days, Emily never seemed to mind.

"I was hoping you'd bring someone with you this year, Emily..." Elizabeth started and Emily grimaced.

It had started earlier than she expected.

"Mother..." she pleaded. Sophie and Alex watched the scene in amusement. It had always been like that, for as long as they could remember. Their mother always tried to avoid the subject, but the Ambassador always won.

It was a known fact for the twins that their mother liked women. Elizabeth Prentiss was aware of that too, and after some years struggling with the news, she finally accepted it. Her main concern, when Emily came out at the age of 17, was that she wouldn't have Grandchildren; for her, that was unacceptable. Her relationship with Emily became more strained; they barely talked to each other.

Between college and her mother's work as an Ambassador, not talking wasn't really an issue; they barely saw each other anyway. After graduation, Emily decided to go to the FBI academy, and that only ticked her mother off more. Elizabeth wanted her daughter to go down the same career path as she had, and she wasn't very pleased when she found out her daughter's choice.

Six years after Emily had joined the FBI, the twins were born. It wasn't something Emily had planned; she knew very well that she liked women, but there was a particular night when she chose to forget that. Nine months later, she had Alex and Sophie. Ambassador Prentiss couldn't have been happier. Even though Emily didn't have a husband, or even a boyfriend, she had heirs, and a continuation for her family, so everything was forgiven.

In the beginning, Emily wondered if she should tell her kids or not that she was gay. It wasn't something she shouted to the whole word, but she decided that if anyone had the right to know, it were her daughters. Taking that in consideration, by the time they were old enough to understand, Emily told them.

"Don't give me that tone, Emily." her mother said, rolling her eyes. "I'm just asking if you found yourself a nice lady. I think it's about time you do that."

Emily sighed, and the twins giggled.

"I know you think that, Mother." she said, rubbing her temples. "You make sure to tell me that every time I come here."

"So what's wrong?" she asks, as Gerald walked into the room, serving Emily and the twins and then leaving again.

"Maybe I am, Mother." Emily replied, shaking her head. "I don't know, maybe I'm not ready."

"You haven't dated anyone since Alex and Sophie were born." the Ambassador said, matter-of-factly. "I know I wasn't your biggest supporter at the beginning, but even I think you should settle down. Build a family."

"I _have _a family." Emily said, defensively.

"And what about someone to share all of that with?" Emily's eyes widened at the question. Sure she had talked about her love life with her mother, it's not like she had a choice, but never in her life she had heard the woman talk like that. Elizabeth seemed to notice the surprise in her daughter's eyes; sighing, she tilted her head down. "I know that sounds odd coming from me, but I _am _your mother, Emily. And whether you believe it or not, I love you and I just want you to be happy."

Emily blinked. Once. Twice. Three times. That wasn't Elizabeth Prentiss. _At all._

"There's someone." Emily confessed, asking herself why in hell she was doing that. "But it's not going anywhere."

Elizabeth threw her a quizzical look, and the twins giggled.

Emily raised an eyebrow at them.

"I bet it's the blond on the picture, Soph." Alex said mischievously to her sister.

"I'm sure it is, Alex." she agreed.

"Wait a minute!" Emily said, exasperatedly. "What picture? What blond?!"

"The blond on the picture you have in your office." Sophie explained. "Of your team."

"We see you looking at the picture." said the blond girl.

"With a dreamy look." the little brunette completed.

Emily was in complete and utter shock.

"You should give them more credit, Emily." her mother said, in a playful tone that Emily wasn't used to. "Seems that you're not the only profiler in the family."

"B-but... how?" Emily asked, bewildered.

She knew she stared at that picture at a lot. All evidence of her work was concentrated only in her office. It was a form of compartmentalization, in a way. Nothing in the rest of the house would suggest that she had a job with the FBI. Her gun safe was in the office, as well as the paperwork she brought home sometimes. Outside that office, she was just a mother. She _never _talked about work when she was with her daughters and she never talked about her daughters at work.

She was pretty sure no one but Hotch, and perhaps Garcia (Emily always thought that there wasn't much that escaped the technical analyst), knew about Alex and Sophie. She didn't talk about them, and not because she wanted to hide her children, but because she didn't want something so pure to come in touch with the world where she worked. So she kept them both apart, and she believed she was doing a good job, until she had fallen helplessly in love with her teammate.

And her daughters knew. Just like that. Plain and Simple. _They knew._

"Whenever we go there to get you out, you're drooling over the picture..." Alex said, Sophie nodding by her side, a small smile on their faces.

"And you don't drool over boys." Sophie finished.

Elizabeth smirked.

"Well, if there's someone Emily, dear, why don't you do something about it?" she asked softly and Emily groaned; not a very ladylike sound. "Emily!"

"Sorry." Emily offered sheepishly. "I can't do anything about it, Mother. She's my co-worker. And besides, I'm pretty sure she doesn't swing my way."

"Swing your way?" Elizabeth repeated. "And what is that supposed to mean?"

"Mommy thinks she doesn't like girls, Grandmother." Sophie offered, giggling.

"Oh." the older woman turned to her granddaughter. "And how do you know that?"

"T.V." the little brunette answered simply. Elizabeth nodded; good or not, children learned everything on television.

"Excuse me, Ma'am." Gerald said, entering the room again. "Dinner is served."

Emily let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. Alex and Sophie jumped off the couch and walked towards the kitchen as fast as they could; had they been at home, Emily knew they'd be running. Getting up, she followed the twins, her mother by her side.

"If you like her, do something about it." her mother whispered by her side. "Don't waste your opportunities because you fear being rejected; don't make the same mistakes I did."

And the older woman walked away, leaving an astounded Emily behind.

Who was that woman, and what the hell had happened to the Elizabeth Prentiss she knew?!

~*~

_Christmas Eve,_

_East Allegheny, Pennsylvania._

JJ smiled as the smell of food invaded her room. She'd always loved Christmas; as long as she had her family with her, she didn't care where she was celebrating it. Her mother would always cook her favorite meals, and she'd spend the afternoon baking cookies with her sister. Her dad would be in front of the TV, watching re-runs of Christmas movies, a bottle of beer secure in his hand.

It had always been like that, for as long as she could remember, and she was glad for the sense of familiarity in it; it didn't matter how wrong everything felt, she knew that some things would always remain the same.

Lying in bed, she closed her eyes softly.

Just like every other time she closed her eyes, a face showed up in her mind instantaneously. Brown eyes greeted her, warm and soft; her smile widened.

Emily Prentiss.

She didn't know when it happened, much less how, but she just couldn't keep the older woman off of her mind. Whenever she'd close her eyes, the brunette would show up, making her heart skip a beat. JJ had fought against it for a long time, but she knew it was helpless.

She also knew it was completely stupid; she knew nothing about her co-worker. Emily was a mystery; all about compartmentalizing. There were times when JJ thought she knew the woman, but most of the time, the brunette would surprise her, even with the tiniest things. It was never a bad surprise, and whenever she did that, the blond would fall deeper in love with her.

And as they spent more time together, JJ found that mystery enticing. She began to understand the reasons behind the brunette's actions and why she was the way she was. It finally came to her that she'd have to learn everything about Emily, piece by piece; that the woman trusted a few people in her life, and that she wanted the brunette to trust her. She learned that day by day, as they became closer, she discovered a little bit more about the older woman; which only made her want her more.

JJ was so engrossed with her thoughts about the brunette that she didn't hear someone knocking on the door, or even turning the knob and entering the room.

"Soooooo, who is he?" asked the blond teenager, making JJ jump in bed.

"What?!" she asked confused. Her sister raised an eyebrow and sat on bed, looking at her. "How many times have I told you to knock?! I thought you'd learn understand that once you became a teenager; apparently, I was wrong."

"Ha! Very funny." the younger sister said, sarcastically. "But really, who's he? You have that dreamy look on your face, and I _know _that look."

"He? There's no 'he'." JJ said, perhaps faster than she should. A smirk appeared on her sister's face and she mentally smacked herself.

"Oh, so it's a 'she'." it wasn't a question. JJ blushed, and ducked down her face, biting her lips nervously. That was all the answer her sister needed. "I knew it!"

"Could you keep your voice down?!" the older blond asked, getting up and closing the door.

"Sorry, sorry!" Alicia said, her blue eyes glowing in excitement. "So, who is she?"

"How do you even know there is someone?" JJ asked, rolling her eyes. That was not the way she imagined telling anyone that she liked women.

"Oh please, JayJ." the teenager mirrored her sister's act. "Ever since you got here you have this look on your face, and sometimes you smile for no reason. I'm not stupid. And besides, I'm your best friend – even though you deny it adamantly – I know you. "

JJ smiled softly. She knew that despite the age gap between them, her sister knew her better than anyone else. Sometimes, she felt kind of stupid, seeking advice from an eighteen year old, but she knew that no matter what, her sister would always be there for her. There were no judgments, no dark glances, nothing, just one sister helping the other.

"Fine." JJ sighed. "There is someone. But it's pointless, it's not going anywhere."

The eighteen year old smiled and put a pillow above her crossed legs, patting the pillow softly, signalizing for JJ to lie there.

"Lets start from the beginning," the teenager said, brushing her sisters hair with her fingers. " Who is she?"

"Emily." JJ answered simply.

"Emily? As in the brunette who works with you?" Alicia asked, surprised. She had never met the woman in person, but she had seen her in one of the many pictures of her team that JJ had in her house.

"Exactly." the press liaison said, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.

"Did you tell her?"

"Of course not!" JJ said, as if the question was absurd. "Honestly Ali, I'm pretty sure she is straight."

"Do you think she knows? I mean, for what you've told me, you work with the best profilers in the world. Wouldn't she have noticed something?"

JJ frowned. She hadn't thought about that, and now that her sister presented the possibility she was starting to freak out. She didn't know, right? She couldn't. They had a deal. They couldn't profile each other. Emily wouldn't do that. She wouldn't invade JJ's privacy like that. And above all, she wouldn't betray JJ.

"We can't profile each other," she answered, as soon as managed to breathe, "and I know she wouldn't do this."

"You seem to know a lot about her." Alicia said, and again, it wasn't a question.

"That's the thing, Ali, I don't," JJ sighed. "But there's nothing I want more than to know everything about her."

Alicia smiled.

"Then maybe you should tell her how you fell." she said knowingly. "It can go better than you expect."

"Since when did you get so wise?" JJ teased, and her sister smiled.

"Oh, I've always been wise. You just never noticed." she winked playfully at the blond lying on her lap. "Besides, I know what I'm talking about."

"You do?" JJ asked, getting up to face her sister. "Care to explain?"

Alicia bit her lower lip. It was amazing how much she and JJ had in common. It wasn't only the deep and expressive blue eyes, or the golden hair; there were also the small traits and mannerisms.

"I'm dating someone." Alicia said, playing with the pillowcase. "Her name is Cameron."

"Oh?" JJ managed to mutter.

"Oh?" her sister repeated. "That's all you have to say? C'mon JJ, I just told you that I'm dating a girl and that's all you have to say?"

"I- I'm absorbing the information!" JJ said, in shock. "I'm freaking out because I'm in love with a woman, who I'm pretty sure is as straight as an arrow, and then you come and tell me that you're dating a girl! Too much, Ali!"

Alicia smiled and JJ did the same.

"Well, yes, I suppose I should've waited a bit." the teenager said, apologetically.

"It's alright." JJ said, pulling her sister into a hug. "How long?"

"Three months." Alicia answered and the older blond smacked her playfully.

"I talk to you almost everyday and you didn't find the need to tell me that?!"

"I'm sorry! I just, I didn't know how you'd react." the younger blond shrieked. "Of course, had I known that you chased skirts too, I wouldn't have been so worried!"

JJ fell back into bed, laughing. It felt good to open up with someone.

"Mom?" she asked, meeting her sister's gaze.

"She said she knew it already," her sister answered, shrugging. "Well, not about Cam, but about the whole liking girls stuff. I'm pretty sure she knows about you too."

"Is she okay with it?" JJ asked. She could have the world against her, and she wouldn't mind, but the thought of not having her mother by her side was more than she could handle.

"Oh, she's more than fine." Alicia said, happily. "She loves Cameron. Dad too. He says at least he doesn't have to worry about me showing up pregnant."

The Press Liaison couldn't help the smile that showed up on her face.

"C'mon JayJ," her sister said, getting up off bed and holding a hand out for her. "Mom said that when I finished breaking the news to you, she wanted help in the kitchen."

Taking her hand, JJ let herself be led out of the room.

"I don't like being the last to know, Alicia." she said, feigning indignation.

"Oh, I'm sure you'll get over it," the teenager smiled and JJ couldn't help but laugh.

She knew that she could count on her sister for anything, but the younger girl never ceased to surprise her.


	3. Chapter 3

**Okay, so, new chapter, after who knows how many months. If anyone was reading this, I'm sorry about that. I'm working on it, though. And even if it might take a while, I'll finish this. So thanks for sticking with me. : ))**

**And btw, it wasn't reviewed, so all the mistakes are mine (hopefully there aren't many). **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, because if I did, things would be different. ;p**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**Chapter III**

_FBI Headquarters, _

_Quantico – Virginia_

Emily made her way to her desk on the bullpen, eyes barely open, a cup of steamy coffee in one hand and her bag in the other. It was relatively early, especially for the brunette, but she had a lot of paperwork to do, consequences of her recklessness during the holidays.

The office was unusually quiet, and she found herself actually enjoying all that peace. Waking up early had its perks, after all. Emily had never been one for crowds and noise; she liked to be on her own, sometimes. Lately, the only reason being that she could think about her blond co-worker without having to worry about hiding it.

She liked to think about JJ, and for the past few months, she had been doing that _a lot_.

Sipping on her coffee – black, two sugars – the brunette began to work on the documents in front of her, but not really paying attention to it. She wondered how JJ's holiday had been. It was a known fact that the Press Liaison was spending Christmas on her hometown, something that didn't seem to please the younger agent very much. Still, Emily wanted to know how it was.

She felt like a hypocrite, trying to pry on JJ's privacy like that, when she would tell practically nothing about her holidays to anyone on the team. She wanted to; she wanted to share all of that with the blond, she just couldn't seem to find a way to do so. How was she supposed to tell JJ that she had kids? Just go all like, 'Hey, Jennifer. How was your holiday? Mine was nice, though my daughters woke me up at 4am on Christmas Eve. Oh, I have two girls, by the way. Twins.'

Yeah, right. Because that would go real smoothly.

She just didn't know. How could you tell someone, that you consider one of your best friends, you forgot mention a huge part of your life? For the past two years? Emily had a feeling that it just wouldn't go too well.

Jennifer Jareau was probably the most understanding person Emily knew, but people had a limit. The brunette knew that trust was the one thing JJ appreciated the most, and whilst she would trust the woman with her life, she didn't know how to tell her that. Whenever she felt like she had the perfect opportunity to do so, something would happen and she'd give up.

Emily Prentiss considered the possibilities of JJ ever liking her in more than a friendly way to be as close to nonexistent as possible, but she knew that if ever came the day that the blond would want her, there shouldn't be secrets between them, especially something like that.

JJ deserved more, or at least, the truth.

"Oh, shit! Am I late?!" the voice came from behind Emily, efficiently pulling her back from the thoughts running through her mind. "Where's everyone else? Hotch got a special case? Shit. Shit. Shit."

"Uh, Jennifer?" the brunette asked, biting her lips softly to stop herself from chuckling at the scene in front of her. "What are you rambling about?"

JJ raised an eyebrow at her.

"You're here. That means _I'm_ late. Shit!" running her hand through her hair, she sighed softly. Emily chuckled, no longer being able to help it. JJ looked so cute when she started to ramble.

"Wow. What's that supposed to mean? You're not late. It's 7am." the brunette explained, rolling her eyes. "Why me being here means that you're late?"

The press liaison snorted. Emily crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at the blond. Sighing again, JJ moved to take a seat on the corner of the brunette's desk, her black pants hugging her thighs tightly, and for a moment, Emily got side-tracked.

"Em, honey, you're _never_ on time for work." she patter Emily's back and smirked. "Let alone, early."

"That's not true!"

"Uh, okay. Tell me one day, just one, that you got here and didn't find the whole team already sat, and working?" JJ asked, a smug look on her face as the older Agent opened and closed her mouth like a fish. "Thought so."

"I hate you, Jennifer Jareau." Emily said between her teeth, but JJ knew better than to believe in her.

"Ah, you wish, Emily Prentiss. You wish."

Swinging her feet, JJ began to watch Emily as she filled all the papers in front of her. The brunette was so entrancing and she wanted nothing more than to reach out and touch her smooth face; bring her close and press those pink lips against hers. But she couldn't. All she could do was watch.

"How was your holiday?" the brunette asked, eyes still focused on the papers in front of her.

"It was really good." JJ answered, a smile showing up on her face. "Mom cooked all my favorite dishes, Dad and I watched all our favorite Redskins' games he has recorded and I finally got to talk properly with my sister after three months. It was good to talk to her, I missed it."

The sound of the pencil scratching the paper stopped, and Emily turned to look at JJ, her own smile appearing as she saw the blonde's expression. JJ had all the little things she missed as a kid, and she didn't take it for granted; she treasured it the way it should be done, and it was one of the many things she loved about the younger Agent.

"When I was a kid, I'd always wanted a sister. Or even a brother." Emily confessed. "When I told my mother that, she looked at me and asked, and I quote, 'why on earth would you want someone to share your things with'?"

"Ouch." JJ said, her eyes flickering with sadness. "How old were you?"

"Seven." the brunette answered, smiling sadly. "My mom is an only child too, and so was my grandmother, I suppose it's how we're raised."

Biting her lip softly, Emily wondered if that would be a good time to mention Alex and Sophie.

"Bless my soul, Emily Prentiss is early for work!" came the voice of Derek Morgan behind them, and Emily sighed. She didn't know whether to be relieved or not. "Did someone change your alarm?"

JJ tried to suppress a chuckle, and Emily glared at her.

"Haha, very funny, Morgan." Emily said, rolling her eyes at him. "I had paperwork to do."

Derek raised an eyebrow at the woman.

"You? You had paperwork do?! As in, you didn't do it over the holidays? As in, Emily Prentiss is behind on paperwork after one week at home?!" he smirked and Emily knew what was coming next. "Damn, girl! You sure kept yourself busy!"

"Oh Morgan, leave her alone." JJ said, but the amused smile on her face didn't match her request.

"No, no, no, sweetie," he said, and Emily grunted. "I wanna know everything. Spill it out, Prentiss. Who is he?"

Emily's head snapped up so fast that she could swear she heard her neck crack. JJ's smile faded as soon as the words came off Morgan's mouth.

"He? What the hell are you talking about, Morgan?!" she asked, her eyes completely focused on the blond sitting next to her, who apparently had found something very interesting on her nails.

"C'mon, Prentiss..." Morgan pushed, as the glass door swung open behind them.

"Stop torturing the girl, my ebony god." Penelope Garcia, the technical analyst of the BAU, made her way into the room and Emily let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. She winked at the brunette and smiled, a knowing look on her face. "If you don't, I might as well tell them what _you_ did over the holidays."

Wrapping his arms around Garcia's waist, Morgan placed a kiss on her neck and grinned at the other two agents.

"Oh babygirl, you can go ahead and tell them. I had the best holiday ever and I sure as hell won't mind bragging about it."

JJ's eyes widened.

"No way!" she squeaked, hands covering her mouth in a mix of shock and excitement.

Garcia nodded, her own grin matching Morgan's.

"Well, that was about damn time!" Emily said, playfully punching Morgan's shoulder. "I thought you're never gonna make a move."

"Maybe now you'll make a move too, Emily..." Garcia said, winking at the brunette.

Emily choked on her own saliva, and her face became a crimson red.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Penelope." she said, hanging her head down. JJ shot her an inquiring look, which Emily purposely ignored.

"Yeah, whatever floats your boat, my dear."

"Ohhh, I wanna know." Morgan teased.

"Whatever it is, it's gonna have to wait." JJ said, as Hotch, Reid and Rossi walked into the bullpen.

"I trust you all had a nice holiday." Hotch said, nodding at the room occupants without actually looking at them. "JJ, you got something for us?"

"I do, sir." The Press Liaison answered, the atmosphere quickly changing; the holidays were over, it was time for business.

"Okay, you can start the briefing as soon as everyone arrives." The Unit chief said, heading towards his room.

"Uh, Hotch? We're all here." JJ said, winking at Emily, unable to hold a smirk.

"Even Prentiss?" his eyes glanced around the room, widening a bit at the sight of the brunette. Emily sighed and rolled her eyes. "Oh, well, then whenever you're ready."

The press liaison nodded and walked off, towards her own room.

"Did someone change Emily's alarm?" Reid asked, making Garcia and Morgan chuckle, while the brunette groaned.

What was so surprising about her being on time?!

~*~

"Johnathan Taylor, Robert Smith and Christian Cooper," JJ said, as the pictures showed up on the screen. "male, early forties, Caucasian. Taylor disappeared over two months ago, his body was found two weeks after the abduction. One week after that, Smith was reported missing, the police found his body one week later, over a mile away from the first dump site. Again, one week later, Cooper was missing, and four days after that, his body was found. His body was dumped on the same area as the last two victims."

"No signs of sexual assault?" Reid asked, flickering through the files, though they all knew it was more out of habit then actual need to look up the information.

"None, and no foreign DNA either." JJ declared, pressing a button and changing the images on the screen. "Clean clothes, same haircut style and even contact lenses in two of them. The D.C. Police thinks the unsub is changing their appearance to fit a delusion or something like that."

"Well, that wouldn't be unusual," Emily said, studying the images carefully. "Lots of serial killers would use their victims to realize some sort of distorted fantasy and then simply get rid of them when the fantasy was broken."

"The one thing I don't get, though, is why would the unsub go through such great lengths to protect the bodies?" Morgan asked, leaning back on his chair and facing his team members. "If the fantasy was broken, then most likely the unsub would be really mad at the victims…"

"Not feeling any kind guilty or remorse." Rossi completed, nodding his head slightly. "It doesn't really make sense."

"Well, we'll get to that later." Hotch said, taking his files and getting up. "Emily, I want you and JJ talking to the family victims. Rossi and Morgan go to the dump sites, see if you can find anything. I'll go to the Station with Reid, get set up and start working on the geographical profile and see what we can come up with. Garcia, you can start checking on the victims background, see if you can come up with something they all had in common. Don't let anything pass."

"Right on it, my general." Garcia said, and left the room as quickly as possible to start working on her magic, as she liked to call.

The other occupants nodded at the received task and went off to do their work. They had less than one day to catch the unsub before another victim was taken, and that was if they worked on the possibility that nothing would happen to change the pattern their killer had fallen into. If something did happen, though, it was most likely that they would have a new victim soon, and that was something they didn't want to consider unless it was absolutely necessary. Changes in the time frame usually meant changes in the unsub's behavior, which would make them all that hard to find due to variations on the profile and on every other thing they had been working based on.

Emily wanted nothing more than to go back a few hours, where everything was teasing and fun, and she could talk to Jennifer without having to worry about someone's life on the line. It had come to a point where she really wanted to tell the other woman everything that she had going on in her life, all of her secrets and deepest fears, but again, she had missed the opportunity. Or maybe there never really was one, though she found that hard to believe. Now, however, she had to let go of those thoughts; let go of the warmth she was feeling radiating from JJ's form, sitting next to her in the Bureau SUV that suddenly felt so small. So, with her work in mind, Emily pushed JJ and all thoughts and feelings related to the blond into one of the many boxes she kept to compartmentalize everything, though she knew quite well that she would never be able to find a box big enough for the woman by her side. It was a futile attempt, though a sincere one nonetheless.

It felt as if she had been working on autopilot for the rest of the case. She would come home on the evenings, and leave everything behind, but still wouldn't let the blond Press Liaison take over her mind. Good thing that her daughters kept her busy when the case didn't. They were working non-stop to get the guy, and finally, when the fourth day rolled off, and Emily felt as if she was going to pass out from exhaustion, Garcia gave them something that lead to the place where the unsub was hiding the victims.

As it turned out, a female was responsible for all the killing, which was quite unusual for them, though not entirely impossible. The woman had accidentally killed her fiancé after a fight, which led to the abductions and fantasies, until one of them would do or say something wrong, and end up dead. The clean dump sites were a result of the remorse the unsub felt for killing her fiancé, that she believed to be alive in the victims she took. They had been able to save the last person abducted, and were free to go home as soon as they had finished the paper work for the case.

Since it was a Friday, Emily was glad that she would get to spend the weekend home with her daughters. It had been a good week, after all. It wasn't always that she got to stay home during a case, and having a weekend off after that was always something she greatly appreciated. She was halfway through the parking lot, when a familiar voice got to her ears, making her stop dead in her tracks.

"Hey!" JJ yelled, catching up to her as she turned around and waited for the blond Liaison. "The team is going out for drinks, you in?"

"Wish I could, but I gotta go home, actually." Emily said, gathering every ounce of willpower inside her to resist the beautiful smile that had taken over JJ's features. "Some other time, maybe?"

"But why not? It's early; you don't have to stay too long. Just one drink, Em." Jennifer tried again, tilting her head to the side and grinning at the brunette.

"I honestly can't, Jennifer. I'm sorry." It broke her heart in a million pieces to see the smile fade from JJ's face, and she wanted nothing more than to change that, but Alexis and Sophie were visiting the Ambassador, and if Emily knew her daughters, then it was quite possibly that they would either be going crazy, or driving her mother crazy, and she knew that it was her responsibility to end that. Her mother loved the girls, and the twins loved their Grandmother, but she knew how hard it could be to handle her daughters.

"Why not?" JJ asked, quietly, as if she couldn't think of a reason why Emily would turn down her invitation. Maybe, well, she really didn't.

"I—" Emily stopped herself, not sure what to say. Taking a deep breath, she hung her d and whispered just as quietly as the blond had done before. "I just can't."

She felt like a coward. Worse than that, really. How could she claim to love the woman before her if she couldn't even tell her the truth? She felt horrible for doing that, especially when she had spent the entire week wanting to tell JJ everything. And now, when she had the chance to do so, she found a way to run away, clearly hurting the blond in the process.

"Was Morgan right?" JJ asked, after a few moments of awkward silence between them, her voice sounding a little apprehensive.

"What?" Emily asked, the question clearly confusing her. "Right about what?"

"Is there someone?" Emily couldn't pinpoint the emotions behind JJ's voice, and it took her a while to understand what the woman in front of her was talking about. The fact that JJ couldn't stare at her in the eyes, though, made her heart clench inside her chest in a way that she never thought it was possible.

"JJ—" She started, but the blond cut her off, her voice tired and defeated.

"Just-- Nevermind, Emily." She said, and Emily flinched at the sound of her name; she had gotten so used to the nickname the blond used that the change almost gave her a whiplash. "Clearly our friendship isn't as strong as I thought it was."

After that, she turned on her heels and started to walk, leaving Emily alone in the cold parking lot, clueless as to what had just happened. One thing she knew, though, was that the woman she loved, the woman that meant the world to her was walking away because she had been too stupid to tell her the truth; to be honest with her. She couldn't let that happen. She wouldn't be able to forgive herself if she let Jennifer Jareau walk away from her because she was too much of a coward to do something. So she blurted out the first thing that came to her mind.

"Lunch!" She yelled, making JJ stop dead in her tracks, turning to face her with an inquiring look. '_Okay, that didn't make much sense,_' she thought, and began to explain. "My place, tomorrow. I'll explain everything to you; answer all of your questions. No more secrets."

"No more secrets?" JJ asked, her voice hopeful. "You promise?"

"I promise." She said, releasing the breath she didn't know she'd been holding. "Tomorrow, I'll pick you up at 11am."

"Okay, tomorrow." JJ said, smiling a little as she rocked back and forth on her heels, before starting to walk away again.

"Oh, and Jennifer?" Emily called, making the woman stop again, though she didn't turn around this time. "Never doubt our friendship."

The Press Liaison simply nodded, before walking away, though the smile on her face was the brightest anyone ever saw.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** Bad grammar? Sucky story? Terrible spelling? Yeah, that's all mine. Other than that? I own nothing, just wish I did.

**Author's Note:** Thank you for all the lovely reviews! I'll be sure to reply all of you tomorrow! And again, this is self beta-d so forgive me for all the mistakes. If it gets too bad, just think how it'd be like for you to write a fic in _my_ mother language (Considering, of course, that you're not brazillian, heh). ;p

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**Chapter IV **

_Jennifer Jareau's House_

_Woodbridge, __Virginia._

As Saturday rolled off, Emily found herself in front of JJ's house. She had been there for at least ten minutes, trying her best to control her emotions; at least long enough so she could get out and knock on JJ's door. She wasn't having second thoughts, – no, Emily knew she couldn't run anymore – but she _was _really nervous. If she was being honest, she was starting to think that nervous didn't even begin to cover what she was feeling; her palms were sweating and she was painfully aware of the fact that her body wasn't responding to her brain. It felt like she was watching the whole scene from afar, willing her frozen body to get out of the car and at least ring the damn doorbell, but nothing would happen. She was pretty sure she was starting to draw people's attention; Emily knew it wasn't often a black car would just stop outside a house and stay there, but she just _couldn't_ move. She was starting to feel pretty pathetic.

"Okay, Prentiss, _get a effing grip!_" She told herself, taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly. She was starting to feel lightheaded and that wasn't good. She _needed_ to get out; one more minute inside that car and she would probably have a heart attack, or something.

Shaking more than she ever believed to be possible, she managed to open the door and make her way to JJ's front door. The blond lived in a nice, small, two-stories cottage that Emily thought it fitted the other woman perfectly. She knew that comfort was the most important thing to JJ, and even though her house wasn't big or extravagant, it was pretty obvious to any observer that it was a good place to live. Gathering all of her courage, she finally rang the doorbell and, shifting from foot to foot, waited for JJ to answer the door.

"Hey." The blond Press Liaison greeted her, the soft smile turning into a smirk as she noticed Emily's behavior. She couldn't believe how cute a nervous Emily could be. "I was beginning to think you'd gotten locked up in your car or something."

"Yeah," Emily chuckled nervously and brought her hands together, gripping them tightly in a futile attempt to calm herself. "I guess you could say I had some problems getting out of that thing. I'm here now, though."

"Yes. Yes, you are." JJ breathed, as if she didn't quite believe that Emily was actually there, in front of her. "For a moment, though, I thought you were having second thoughts about this."

"No!" Emily all but screamed, feeling the need to reassure JJ, as she noticed a small pang of hurt in the woman's voice. "It's just—" She took a deep breath, and stared at the beautiful pair of deep blue eyes that were focused on her. "This won't be easy, Jennifer. I know you want this, and you deserve it more than anyone else in my life, but I'm scared that it's going to be too much. I'm scared that you won't be able to handle it and our friendship will be damaged forever. I don't want that. You have no idea how much you mean to me."

JJ tried her best to ignore the butterflies that took over her stomach at hearing Emily's statement, but it was pointless. Everytime the brunette said something, she would fall even more hopelessly in love with her, and she knew that nothing Emily could say would change that. Yes, she was well aware of the fact that she knew practically nothing about the woman standing in front of her, and that for all she knew, Emily _could_ be a completely different woman than she believed her to be, but somehow she had the feeling that whatever secrets the brunette held, they would only make her feelings towards her stronger.

"I'm not gonna run, Em." She said, taking Emily's hand on hers. "I know I'm asking a lot of you, and I wouldn't-- I _won't_ turn my back on you just because it might be too much. I think you deserve more than that."

"Good," Emily said, breathing a sigh of relief and grinning at JJ. "We'll see if you'll still think like that later," she joked.

"Emily, are you a killer?" Jennifer asked, her face serious, her eyes focused on the brunette in front of her.

"No, I'm pretty sure I'm not." Emily answered, slightly puzzled by the question. However, when she was starting to panic, JJ grinned, and she immediately relaxed.

"Then you have nothing to worry about!" The blond joked, and disappeared inside for a second, before coming back with her bag and jacket in hand. "So, what do you say we get out of here?"

"Yeah, let's go." Emily agreed and made her way to car hoping that the day would end up well.

~*~

_Emily Prentiss' House_

_Washington D.C._

The ride to Emily's place had been quiet, though both women would agree that it hadn't been uncomfortable. They talked about minor things, but mostly both woman kept to themselves, thinking about the changes they were about to face. JJ was thoroughly surprised when she found herself in one of the wealthiest suburbs of Washington; she'd always pegged Emily for the apartment type - the whole single, wealthy woman thing. To say she was shocked would be an understatement, but she quickly figured out that she would probably be feeling like that for the rest of the day - she was about to dive head first in Emily's life and she couldn't really expect not to be a little blown away by the sudden changes.

As she got out of the car, in front of Emily's house – or well, _mansion_, in JJ's opinion – she noticed that they were in a typical family neighborhood. It was clear by the toys in the gardens and the children running up and down the street. It confused JJ, but she couldn't help enjoying the atmosphere of the place; it was clearly impossible to be unhappy in a place like that. Even after everything she'd seen on her job, the woman liked to believe that there _were_ safe places to live, and she was pretty sure Emily's neighborhood was one of them.

As they made their way to the door, her eye caught some movement to her side, and she couldn't help but to chuckle as she saw a teenage boy trip on something and fall next to them. Looking over to Emily, she saw the brunette was even more amused than her, watching as the boy got up and cleaned up the dirt from his clothes and looked back at them, a sheepish smile playing on his lips.

"Hey, Mrs. Prentiss." The boy said, waving with one hand while the other one moved over to the back of his neck, scratching it slightly. "How are you doing?"

"I'm doing great, Connor." Emily said, smiling at the boy. "What about you?"

"Great, great," he answered, still looking like a kid who was just caught with a hand in the cookie jar. "Could you please tell Sam I'll be waiting here for her?"

"Sure thing," Emily answered. "I don't think she'll be long."

"Okay, thanks again Mrs. Prentiss." Connor thanked, looking a little more comfortable. Then, looking at JJ, he nodded and smiled, "Mrs. Prentiss' friend."

"Mrs. Prentiss?" JJ teased, as she followed Emily inside the house, confused by what had just happened outside.

"Well, what can I say? The kid is polite. I've told him for lord knows how many times that it's Emily, but it's no use, so I gave up." Emily said, shrugging and winking at Jennifer, just before another teenager came running from the kitchen. The blond figured the girl was probably a year younger than her sister, or close to that, at least. She had bright green eyes and a beautiful red hair flowing just above her waist. JJ raised an inquiring eyebrow at Emily, but the woman was too busy smirking at the girl in front of them. "You know, I think you should tell your boyfriend that he has to work on his hiding skills because he's not doing a very good job trying to sneak out of the house."

"Ugh! I swear to God, sometimes he can be the stupidest person I've ever met!" The girl exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. "What did he do this time?"

"Tripped over something, fell right in front of us." Emily answered, her smirk growing bigger.

"Boys," The girl muttered, shaking her head. She then noticed JJ standing awkwardly next to the door, and smiled warmly. "You must be JJ."

"Ah, right, sorry," the elder brunette said, mentally kicking herself. "Sammy, this is JJ, my friend. JJ, this is Samantha."

"I'm the annoying teenager who lives next door." The girl said, smirking as Emily rolled her eyes at the statement. "Mom and Aunt Emily have been bff's for years."

"It's very nice to meet you, Samantha." JJ said, shaking the girl's hand.

"Oh, call me Sammy, or Sam, please," Sammy said, shrugging. "Samantha is too formal."

"Sammy, got it."

"Good," Emily interrupted, taking something out of her pocket. "Now that you've been introduced to each other, your boyfriend is waiting for you outside Sammy. Go hang out with him. And thanks, again."

"Any time," Sammy said, grinning as she saw Emily waggling fifty dollars. She quickly got the money, kissed Emily's cheek and left, saying her goodbyes on the way out. "You're the best, Aunt Em! Bye, JJ!"

"Yeah, right, bye, kiddo!"

Emily turned to JJ, grabbing her jacket and putting on the hanger, before she motioned to the living room. She figured since the house was so quiet, Alexis and Sophie were probably watching a movie or something upstairs. They certainly could be very quiet when they _wanted _to.

"Did I scare you off yet?" She asked, as JJ followed her through the house. She could see the woman, – though not a profiler – was taking in everything in her surrounds.

"No," JJ answered, rolling her eyes. "And you won't."

"Yeah, well, you just hang in there," moving to the kitchen, she turned to face JJ. "Can I get you something to drink? Water, wine, beer?"

"A beer would be nice," the blond woman answered, sitting on one of the benches in front of the kitchen counter, as Emily took two beers out of the fridge and handled her one. "You have a lovely house, Emily." She paused. "If you don't mind me asking, though, why such a big one?"

"Yeah, well, I guess it's time to spill the beans." She tried to joke, but JJ saw through the façade. "Okay, but just remember you promised not to run."

"For the hundredth time, Emily, I _won't_ run." JJ declared seriously, holding Emily's gaze.

"Okay, well… I'll be right back, okay?" JJ nodded and Emily quickly left the kitchen, leaving the other woman alone with her thoughts. She moved back to the living room, and began to walk around aimlessly, looking through the little things that she hadn't noticed before. The portraits hanging on the wall caught her attention, and JJ found herself staring at the most amazing pictures she'd ever seen in her entire life. She liked to believe that she'd seen Emily smile, but it was _nothing_ compared to what she was seeing now. It was beautiful, beyond that, even; like the woman in those pictures didn't have a single care in the world. Like she'd found a reason to live and didn't need anything else. In those pictures, reflected in those smiles, JJ could see only happiness, pure and raw. It brought tears to her eyes, ones she quickly wiped away as she heard steps echoing from the stairs.

She knew what she was about to face; she'd seen it in the pictures, but she didn't think that any amount of warning would prepare her to the sight that she met as she turned around as her name was called.

Jennifer heard herself gasp as she saw two girls running inside the living room following Emily. She would have had to be blind not to notice the similarities between the woman in front of her and the children who had just appeared. Suddenly, it dawned on her why Emily was so scared that she would run away; she was pretty sure that was exactly what most people would do. Flee, take the easy way out, run before things got heavy - but this just wasn't her. She had promised Emily she wouldn't run away, and besides, she wasn't sure she would ever be able to. The sight in front of her was enough to bring tears to her eyes again. JJ always thought that Emily would be very good with children; she just didn't realize the reason for that was because the brunette already _had_ children of her own.

She was pretty sure Emily _wasn't_ married; not only because the brunette didn't wear a ring, but also because she knew that Emily wouldn't flirt with her the way she did – and it _was_ flirting – if she had been committed to somebody else. It just didn't suit her. But JJ couldn't help but wonder if there was someone. Surely those two girls had to have a father?

"Jennifer, I would like you to meet my daughters, Alexis and Sophie," Emily's voice brought her out of her musings, and JJ couldn't help but smile as the two girls let go of Emily to look at her. "Alex, Soph, this is Jennifer Jareau, mom's friend."

"Nice to meet you, Ms. Jareau." both girls said at the same time, making JJ's grin widen.

"Well, it's very nice to meet you too."

Emily watched as her daughters began to whisper something to each other, and couldn't help but to roll her eyes at them; she knew _exactly_ what they were talking about, and as long as they didn't mention anything to JJ, she would be fine with it. It just wasn't the time for that conversation yet. JJ already had too much on her plate, and although she seemed to be dealing pretty well with it, she just didn't want to push her luck.

"Is Ms. Jareau going to stay for lunch, Mommy?" Alex asked, her face expectant and a big grin on her lips.

"Yeah, will you, Ms. Jareau?" Sophie echoed, her expression matching her sister's. Emily could practically see the cogs turning inside her daughters head, and she wasn't really sure if she wanted to know what they were planning. Because Emily knew her kids well enough to know what that smile meant, and it was nothing but trouble_._

"You two can call me JJ." The blond said, smiling softly at the girls, and watched in fascination as they both turned to Emily, lifting a perfect eyebrow, just like their mom would do when silently questioning something. Upon receiving a small and barely noticeable nod from Emily, they turned back to face her, their smiles even bigger.

"Okay, will you stay for lunch, Ms. JJ?" Jennifer couldn't help but chuckle at their antics. She was sure she wouldn't be able to hold the tears much longer.

"No Ms., just JJ." She said again, as she leaned her body so she could face the girls eye to eye. "And yes, your Mommy invited me over for lunch, if that's okay."

"Sure it is!" Sophie exclaimed, clapping her hands. "Gonna be fun, right Al?"

"Yes!" Alex agreed, and then moved to whisper something in JJ's ear. "Mommy is the _best_ cooker!"

JJ turned to face Emily, just in time to see the woman shaking her head, though the smile in her face couldn't probably get any bigger.

"Alex is exaggerating; I'm not the _best_ cooker." JJ couldn't help but to smile at the small blush that made its way over Emily's cheeks.

"I'm sure she's not." JJ said, winking at the little blond girl. "You don't give yourself enough credit, Em."

Emily's cheeks got even redder after that statement, and JJ just smiled even more as the girls began to giggle.

"Yeah, erm, well," Emily stammered. Cleaning her throat, she continued, "Mommy is going to get lunch ready, and talk with Jennifer, and I'll call you Munchkins when it's done."

"Okay, Mommy!" They both said in unison, and took off upstairs.

"No running inside the house!" Emily yelled after them, shaking her head as they stopped dead in their tracks and started to walk instead of running. She then turned to JJ, and motioned towards the kitchen, "Shall we?"

The blond nodded, whiping her tears, and followed the brunette, who was preparing herself to explain everything that had just happened. It was time to tell JJ everything, and hopefully, to start building something with the younger woman. She just hoped everything would work out.


	5. Chapter 5

Okay, that didn't take as long as the last time, right? I have to warn you, though, my classes just started again, and this semester I'm sure it's gonna be pretty hectic, so between College, French classes and a bunch of projects, I'm not sure how often I'll be able to update my fics. I'll try to post something as often as possible, but unfortunately I can't make any promises. This chapter is probably the longest so far, and I'm quite happy with it, so I hope that you like it too. Enjoy!

And again, it's self beta-d, so forgive all of my mistakes.

**Disclaimer: **Yes, I just realized that I _do_ own some things! Sophie, Alexis, Alicia and Cameron are mine, but other than that, I'm sorry to say that I only own the mistakes. But someday, folks, someday!

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**Chapter V**

_Emily Prentiss' House_

_Washington D.C._

"How old are they?" JJ asked, as soon as they got into the kitchen. Emily was moving around, gathering everything she'd need to start cooking and the blond woman couldn't help but to watch her every movement; this wasn't Agent Emily Prentiss in front of her – no, this was just Emily, or more importantly, it was _Mommy_, a role that fitted the woman perfectly, like there was nothing Emily could possibly be more successful doing. At first, she was surprised at how the brunette could be someone completely different than the woman she saw everyday at work, but then she realized that this was only a part of Emily compartmentalization skills. Like the two completely different worlds she lived in weren't supposed to meet each other under any circumstances and JJ couldn't really say that she didn't understand the other woman's reasons for acting the way she did.

Of course, it wasn't saying that she wouldn't have appreciated a short notice before being introduced to Emily's daughters, but JJ was feeling pretty special about even being there - because she _shouldn't_ be. Her presence there, in Emily's life, meant that the two worlds the woman fought so hard to keep separated were blurring together. And it was all because of her; because the brunette thought she was more important than the balance she had found between her job and her private life. And that single fact alone was enough to make JJ's heart swoon with love. Emily wasn't joking around when she said no more secrets, and even though it was quite a lot to take in, it was well worth all the effort she put on doing so.

"Seven," Emily answered, turning around to face JJ. "Nearly eight, actually."

"They're beautiful, Em." JJ breathed, holding Emily's gaze for a moment, and then focused on tracing random patterns on the cold stone. "I guess they take after you."

Again, she saw Emily blush, and couldn't help but smile. "Yeah, well, except for Alexis' hair, and Sophie's eyes, they don't have much from their father." Emily began to move around again, but continued to talk, and made sure to face JJ from time to time, just to show that she was focused on their conversation. "Mother says that we, Prentiss' women, have a strong gene. You'd be surprised how alike we all are."

"Well, not really surprised," JJ teased. "I mean, I've _met_ Ambassador Prentiss, and now your daughters, so I think I have a pretty good idea."

"Yeah, you're right," Emily agreed. She paused for a moment, and turned to the blond woman again, her hand hanging in thought, as if she wasn't sure if she'd like the answer to her next question, but knowing that she'd have to ask anyway. "Are you mad?"

"No," JJ answered immediately, and the brunette breathed a sigh of relief. "I am confused, though."

"And you have every right to be," Truth be told, Emily was half expecting JJ to run out the door at any minute. She knew JJ wouldn't do this, but she couldn't help being a little apprehensive about everything. She'd laid all her cards on the table; all she could do now was hope for the best. "But since you're still here, I'm keeping my word – no more secrets, Jennifer. I'll try my best to answer all of your questions."

"I won't lie to you, Em," the blond started, drinking her beer and then focusing her attention on the small bottle, lost in her own thoughts. Emily waited patiently, because she knew that JJ would be in charge of that conversation; she owed her _at least_ that much. "I'm overwhelmed. I have so many emotions inside me right now that I can't seem to focus on one of them long enough to actually _know_ what I'm feeling. Does that make any sense?"

"It does," Emily nodded, and then continued in a whisper. "And I'm sorry for that."

"No, no, no," the blond said, moving around the counter to grab Emily's arm and turn the other woman around. She needed Emily's full attention; somehow it didn't feel right to have that conversation with the brunette moving around the kitchen, and, deep inside, JJ knew that things would go a lot better if she could just look into Emily's eyes. That always seemed to calm her nerves and she could _really_ use that right now. Lacing their fingers – and noticing how well they fit together – she took a deep breath before talking again, "You don't need to apologize. Not to _me_, Emily."

The Profiler smiled softly and let JJ play around with her hand before she could continue. Emily always knew when to talk and when to listen, and JJ had more than once stated that it was one of the many things she loved about her. Her heart would always skip a bit – or two, or three – when the other woman would say something like that, but at the same time, she would always convince herself that it wasn't something romantic; that JJ loved her as _a friend_ and nothing more. There were days however, when she felt like drowning in self-pity, that she'd let herself believe that the Press Liaison _did_ return her feelings but, just as Emily, couldn't find a way to simply come out and confess her undying love. Those were the days when Emily Prentiss would usually indulge in one of her few guilty pleasures, resulting in one less bottle in her den, and a massive headache on the next day, which she considered to be punishment enough for both her stupidity and cowardice.

Jennifer Jareau would never agree that she was stupid, and Emily knew that pretty well, but she was so set in her assumptions and convictions, that no matter what the blond would say, she'd never let herself believe in her words; at least not entirely. Her own acts were proof enough that she was, indeed, all of the bad things she believed herself to be, and even though JJ loved her past those flaws it didn't mean that they were non-existent. She had gone about things the wrong way; she'd done everything she wasn't supposed to do, and now Emily found herself so trapped in her own net of mistakes that she just couldn't believe that things could, somehow, work out. She wasn't supposed to fall in love with her best friend, nor was she supposed to outright _lie_ to someone she claimed to mean so much to her. Thus, for all those reasons, she felt more than worthy of all the horrible things JJ could say to her, and even worse, she wouldn't blame the blond if she indeed walked out of her house and never turned back again.

Yet, as unbelievable as it was, JJ was nothing if not understanding, leaving Emily so surprised and vulnerable that she just didn't know how to act. Looking in those deep blue eyes, the only thing the brunette could think was how lucky she was to have someone like Jennifer Jareau in her life. No one else – and she knew that for a fact – would have given her the chance to explain all of her acts, try to make things right and save everything that she, for so long, believed to be lost.

"I just need you to tell me everything." JJ said after what seemed an eternity but, in reality, were just a few seconds. "Who else knows about them?"

"Hotch," Emily pointed out and the other woman nodded; it was kind of _obvious_ that their unit chief would know something like that. "And Garcia because, well, she _ is_ omniscient. I know we don't take her seriously when she says that, but I'm actually scared of what other things she knows about my life. I'm sure she knows better than me how much I have on my own bank account!"

"So you didn't actually _tell_ anyone on the team?"

"No, you're the first," Emily confirmed, "I just-- it didn't seem right to talk about them there, you know? I don't know what I'm going to do when they're old enough to understand what my job entails and talking about them in the BAU felt as if I was bringing them closer to that. It's pointless, I know, but I don't want them to know how _cruel_ the world is just yet."

"It's why I understand that I'm still standing here, Em." JJ said softly, squeezing the brunette's hand. "I know that whatever reasons you had to keep this from me they must have been pretty serious."

Emily nodded, "They're the most important thing in my life, Jennifer. I'd give up anything and everything for them." _And for you too,_ she completed in her mind. "They're the reason I do what I do – why I try to make the world a better place, even if just a little."

"And--" JJ paused, taking a deep breath to control her emotions. She both anticipated and dreaded what the answer to her next question would be, but she figured it was just better to ask and get over with it. "Their father?" Try as she might, she couldn't find the confidence to properly ask the question and her voice ended up coming out as nothing more than a whisper.

"Don't know, don't care." Emily answered, shrugging nonchalantly.

"Oh?" JJ really wanted to smack herself for that stupid sound but she couldn't help it; she was torn between confusion and excitement. In all honesty, she felt like jumping on Emily right then and there, but a small voice in her mind told her that it wasn't time for that yet.

"I had just finished the Academy training when it happened," reading the confusion in JJ's eyes, Emily began to explain. "I had a bad break-up and, well, just wanted to drink it away. It wasn't something I'd usually do, but when this guy came up to me I just let him have his way," she shook her head and sighed, "One thing led to the other, and next thing I knew it was morning and I was naked on some guy's bed. I didn't even know his name, nor did I care, honestly, I just wanted to get the hell out of there. I felt dirty in more ways than one. Honestly never thought I'd do something so stupid like that, but I think we all have our moments of recklessness, right?"

"We sure do," JJ agreed even though she knew Emily's question was rhetorical.

"Yeah, well, I found out a few weeks after that night that I was pregnant," Emily continued. "At first, of course, I freaked out; I didn't know what my Mother would think and I wasn't really sure I was even ready to have children. I never actually believed I'd be a mother someday, and I was positive that Ambassador Prentiss had already given up all hope of ever being a grandmother."

"Why?" JJ interrupted, frowning slightly. She couldn't think of a reason why Emily would think something like that. Even though she realized that the circumstances were not the best, the blond never thought that the brunette would be the one to doubt herself, especially when it came to having children. In fact, if she thought someone could make a good mother, that person was Emily Prentiss.

"I didn't know if I was ready for that." Emily sighed. "I could barely take care of myself, let alone a child. And even though I've always wanted to be a mother, I figured that with a job like mine it wasn't the best thing to do. Plus, I was terrified. You know my Mother didn't exactly win any 'Mommy of the Year' award, so I couldn't really say I had a good example."

"And what changed?" The Press Liaison inquired, raising an eyebrow at her friend.

"I got a doctor's appointment to see how far along I was and how everything was going, and well--" Emily smiled softly, remembering how she felt when she first saw her daughters on the ultrasound monitor. "They were tiny bits of nothing at the time, but just the idea of a human being growing inside of me changed everything. At that moment, I just knew I couldn't give them up. It wasn't easy, by no means at all, to keep my job at the FBI and still be there for them whenever they needed me, but somehow we managed. They were the reason why I stayed on a desk-job for so long, even though I knew it wasn't what I wanted to do."

JJ nodded and bit her lip carefully; her mind was working twice as normal to process the whole information. "And don't they ask for their father?" Even though the subject wasn't her favorite, she still felt as though she had to ask.

"They used to, yeah." Emily said. "When they were old enough to understand, though, I explained the whole situation," she shrugged. "It was never a problem, really, they just wanted to understand. And well, I don't think they miss it. Those two actually chased away every person who's ever tried to have a relationship with me. They're kind of overprotective."

JJ didn't fail to notice how Emily said _'person' _instead of 'men' and she couldn't help but feeling a surge of hope at hearing that. Could she stand a chance with the woman? And what would Alex and Sophie do once they realized that JJ was interested in being more than friends with their mother? Would they be okay with it, or would they chase her away too? She figured that even if they wanted to do that, it was worth a shot. If she had a chance, as small as it might be, to have a family with Emily, then she would do everything in her power to make it happen, even if it meant she'd have to win the twin's approval. She didn't consider it to be a bump on the way, and even if it was, Emily Prentiss was worth all the effort.

At that thought, a small smile appeared on her lips, only to turn into a full grin seconds after. "Well, I think they're right," JJ said, still smiling like a fool at the brunette. "It just shows that they realize how precious you are, Em."

She watched in fascination as Emily's pale skin got two shades redder and the woman hung her head down, without knowing what to say. "I, erm, well--" the brunette took a deep breath and met JJ's eyes again, her grin matching the blonde's one. "Can you cook?"

"I can cook, yeah." JJ answered, a little bit puzzled at the sudden topic change.

"Good, you're helping me with lunch, then." Emily winked at her and then started moving around the kitchen again.

"Hey Em," JJ called, grabbing the brunette's arm and capturing her attention again. "Thank you. For telling me everything."

"No, thank you for giving me the chance to do so." Emily smiled. Even though she hadn't told JJ about her feelings, she knew she was on the right path, and soon she'd be able to be completely honest to the other woman about how she felt."It felt good to finally tell you all that. And you can ask me anything, JJ. I want you to know that."

"I know." JJ said, and before she could think better, she moved to place a small kiss on Emily's cheek. "Okay, we better start cooking or we won't be eating today!"

~*~

"Do you have kids, Ms. JJ?" Alexis asked, putting her fork down as she gave up trying to grab a piece of penne that simply wouldn't stay in place.

"Nope, no kids." JJ answered as she smiled at the small pout on the younger blond's face.

"Do you have a boyfriend?" Sophie inquired, as Alexis finally managed to eat her piece of pasta and was doing a little dance that had Emily's eyes shining with amusement. JJ could notice, though, that Sophie's question had perked up Emily's attention, and the fact that Emily was interested on her answer only made her heart flutter in her chest.

"No," JJ chuckled. "It's been a _long_ time since I had a boyfriend."

Emily couldn't contain her smile at hearing that. "Well, what about a girlfriend?" Sophie pried, intent on learning everything she could about the blond woman that she'd only seen in her mom's pictures.

Emily choked on her food at hearing that, and sent a pointed look at her daughter. "Sophie!"

"No, it's okay, Em." JJ reassured, being actually quite amused by the blush that took Emily's face at hearing her daughter's question. "Girlfriend, you say?"

"Yes," Alexis looked briefly at Emily to make sure she was allowed to go on, and then began to explain, as Sophie nodded by her side. "Mommy says that some girls don't like boys, and some boys don't like girls, and that, er..."

"And that some girls date girls, and some boys date boys." Sophie concluded, as her sister seemed to lose her line of thought. "So if you don't have a boyfriend, then do you have a girlfriend, Ms. JJ?"

"No, I also don't have a girlfriend." JJ paused, and then winked at Emily as she concluded her sentence, "Not _yet_, at least."

At hearing that, Emily couldn't control her body, sending her food down the wrong way and resulting in a fit of cough that only made JJ giggle.

"Are you okay, Mommy?" Alexis asked, as she shared a knowing look with her sister.

"Yeah, are you_ okay_, Emily?" JJ voiced the question, smirking at the brunette in front of her.

"I'm fine, thanks." Emily said, as she finally regained control of her body and was able to breath properly again. However, the blush in her face hadn't disappeared, and at seeing the brunette flushed like that, JJ's thoughts immediately left the PG territory and were quickly becoming too inappropriate to the current time and place. Sometimes she just couldn't help wondering how it'd be like to have Emily's body moving against her own, the older woman squirming under her as she made up for all the time they hadn't been able to experience that. But she was patient. She'd waited for so long, and she knew that she'd wait as long as she knew had to, because for Emily Prentiss, she knew could wait forever. Of course, she hoped she didn't _have_ to, but the brunette was still was worth it.

The rest of lunch continued pretty much the same way; JJ soon realized that Sophie and Alexis were very inquisitive and straightforward, just like their mother. The more time she spent with the little girls, the more she noticed how much they took after Emily. It wasn't just the looks, but the mannerisms and the way they seemed to already have her wrapped around their little fingers, just like she knew Emily had her. Sometimes the brunette would exclaim one of her daughter's names as they asked a few inappropriate questions, but JJ was never fazed by their behavior, but rather amused, and would always answer their questions with a huge grin on her face. She couldn't remember having so much fun in a really long time, and the fact that she got to spend almost an entire day with Emily _outside _the BAU, only made her even more happy.

"I had an amazing day, Em." JJ said, as Emily parked in front of her house. They ended up having such a great day together, that Sophie and Alexis suggested JJ stayed for dinner as well, which Emily didn't oppose and the blond woman promptly accepted, wanting to spend as much time as she could with Emily and her daughters. It was now way past dinner time, and Samantha was staying with the girls again so Emily could drive JJ back to her place. "Thank you."

"Well, I should be the one thanking you," Emily smiled and in unconsciously took JJ's hand on her own. "_You_ were amazing. Alex and Soph absolutely loved you."

"That's good, I wouldn't want them against me." JJ said, grinning at the brunette. Then, biting her lip in thought, she continued, "Would you like to come in? Have a cup of coffee before you head home? You don't have to, if you need to go--"

"I'd love to." Emily interrupted her as she noticed that JJ was starting to ramble, something she only did when she was extremely nervous.

"Oh, good." JJ breathed, and smiled at Emily, squeezing the brunette's before she got out of the car.

She raised an eyebrow as she saw that the lights of her house were on, even though she was almost sure that when she left they weren't like that. Shaking her head, and guessing that she just couldn't remember, she opened the door only to hear the sound of the TV coming from the living room. Emily seemed to be puzzled by that as well, but as soon as JJ took off her jacket and put her keys on the key holder, she knew what was going on.

"Ugh, I can't _believe_ she did this." JJ said to herself, shaking her head as a sigh escaped her lips.

"Who did what, Jennifer?" Emily asked, as she placed placed her own jacket next to JJ's. She was resisting the urge to pull her gun out; JJ didn't seem alarmed, but she had noticed that the woman had been a little confused when they entered the house.

"You'll see." Was all the blond said, before she moved towards what Emily assumed was her living room. There, sprawled on the couch, were two teenagers, that Emily would guess could have no more than eighteen years old. The blond, who looked _exactly_ like JJ, had her head on the brunette's lap, who was brushing the other girl's hair with her hand, as they both had their attention focused on the TV.

She watched with some amusement as JJ cleaned her throat, making the two girls immediately jump off the couch, the brunette hiding behind the blond teenager.

"Well, it was about _damn _time you got home!" Alicia exclaimed, as she tried to read JJ's expression. She knew she wasn't _mad_, but it she thought it was better to be sure about it.

"_Excuse me?"_ JJ said, as she raised an eyebrow at her sister. Emily and the other brunette couldn't help but chuckle at the scene in front of them. It looked as if JJ was talking to a younger version of herself.

"Well, we've been here almost the entire day and you were like, gone!" Alicia explained, rolling her eyes.

"Oh, do forgive me for not telling you, Ali, but I _didn't_ know you were planning to visit!" JJ said sarcastically. That apparently got the other girl's attention.

"You didn't _tell_ her?!" She asked Alicia, smacking the blond's arm.

"Yeah, well, I wanted to surprise her. Mom said it'd be a good idea." Alicia said, shrugging as a pout came to her lips. "Besides, you gave me a key, didn't you?"

"Well, I was hoping you'd at least let me know _when _you were planning on using it." JJ pointed out, but moved around the couch to pull her sister into a hug. "I'm happy to see you. Surprised, yes, but really happy."

"Yeah, yeah, I knew you'd be like that once you were over the initial shock." Alicia teased.

"Smart ass," JJ said, rolling her eyes. Turning to the other girl, she smiled. "Cameron, I suppose?"

"Yeah, sorry about the intrusion." The brunette said, smiling sheepishly. "It's nice to finally meet you, Ms. Jareau."

"Oh, please, it's JJ. I'm sure Ali told you that already." Turning around, JJ noticed that Emily was standing in the same spot she'd been, apparently having found something very interesting on her fingernails. "Em?"

"Yes?" The older brunette said, snapping out of her daze.

"This_ intruder_," she said, pointing to her sister, and then to Cameron as she introduced them. "is my younger sister, Alicia. And her partner in crime is Cameron, her..."

Seeing as JJ wasn't sure how to introduce them, Alicia came to her rescue. "Cam is my girlfriend." She said, smiling at her sister. "It's cool, it's not like I have something to hide, right?"

"Oh! Your _girlfriend." _Emily said, as she finally realized what the younger girl was saying. Before she could help it, a smile came to her lips. "Well, it's really nice to meet you. Your sister talks a lot about you, Alicia."

"She talks a lot about you too, Emily." Alicia said, smirking and winking at her sister, who immediately became as red as a tomato.

"I, uh--" Emily stammered, before JJ interrupted her.

"Well, I'm gonna go to the kitchen with Emily, you two can continue to do whatever it was that you two were doing before we arrived," JJ said as she motioned Emily to follow her. "As long as it's not something that it'll permanently damage my couch, okay?"

"Don't worry, your couch is safe, Jayj!" Alicia yelled as the two older women disappeared into the kitchen. She then turned to her girlfriend. "See? Told you she was cool."

"Yeah, I guess it's a family thing." Cameron agreed, placing a small peck on her girlfriend's lips. "So, what's up with her and Emily?"

"Nothing," Alicia said, her voice no more than a whisper. "Well, nothing _yet, _I think_. _Jayj's totally crazy about her, though."

"Well, then what are they waiting? Emily's obviously mad about her too."

"Oh, but you remember how long it took for _us_ to actually tell each other how we felt?" Alicia asked, sending Cameron a pointed look. "They're adults, they're even worse at this than we teenagers are."

"That they are, baby." Cameron agreed, as she started to brush Alicia's hair with her hand again. "That they are."


	6. Chapter 6

Well, I come bearing a new chapter! Sorry for the waiting, between classes and holidays and all that stuff I just didn't have quite the time to write this, but here it is! I hope you enjoy it. I'm quite happy with the outcome, even though it isn't what I had originally planned for this chapter. Self-beta'd, so forgive the mistakes. Thanks for the reviews! They really make my day. :)

**Disclaimer:** Everything you recognize is not mine, though I still wish I could have Emily and JJ all to myself.

* * *

**Chapter VI **

_FBI Headquarters,_

_Quantico, VA._

"You've reached Garcia's realm of knowledge," The chippy voice of the tech analyst came to her ears, and she smiled at the familiar greeting. "Tell me what you need and my magical self will make it happen."

"I'm in love, Garcia." JJ spoke before she could really consider what she was saying.

"Well, I'm flattered, Jayj, really, but do I need to remind you that I'm taken?" Garcia attempted so sound serious, but the Press Liaison could hear the smile on her voice.

"Not to burst your bubble, my lovely crazy person, but you're _not_ the object of my affection." She teased, grinning as she heard the other woman snort.

"I _know_ you're not in love with me, silly girl. I know everything, remember?" Even though she knew JJ couldn't see it, Garcia couldn't help but roll her eyes. She loved her family more than anything in her life, but she couldn't understand why it was so hard to believe that she _was_ omniscient. "May I ask how you came to that conclusion?"

"What, you don't wanna know who I'm in love with?" JJ asked, ignoring the question the other woman threw at her.

"Did you _not_ hear what I just said?!" Garcia exclaimed, her voice exasperated. "I've known for a long time that you fell head over heels for our dear Emily, the stranger."

"You do?" The blond Press Liaison asked confusedly, her eyebrows forming a perfect frown. "But what if I was talking about somebody else? You couldn't be so sur--"

But Garcia didn't let her finish. "Jayj, I swear to God, if you continue to question my knowledge I _will_ be forced to send a mass e-mail to our team with photos of a young – and very much naked – JJ running after a soccer ball!"

"How did you even get--" JJ stopped her speech midway, and closed her eyes briefly to regain her focus. "Nevermind, I don't wanna know. But please make sure you keep those pictures to yourself."

"That's the plan, my dear sunshine. Unless, of course, you continue to insult me with your silly questions." Garcia said, and JJ knew that she had a smug expression on her face. "Now, do tell me how you finally came to your senses about your feelings for our mutual friend."

"I don't know how it was, really," JJ confessed. "One day it all just clicked together. Couldn't keep my mind off her ever since. And well--"

"And you just decided to tell me now?" The tech analyst interrupted, a fake sadness in her voice. "I'm hurt, Jayj. I thought I was your best friend."

"Oh, shush," JJ said, though Garcia tell she was kidding. "I just, I didn't know how to tell you."

"Well, seems to me that you handled it pretty well." The other blond teased and then became serious. "But don't you think that maybe you should get to know Emily better before you dive head first into this whole thing? I mean, I love Emily dearly, and she's obviously crazy about you too, but we have to agree that we know practically nothing about her life outside the BAU."

"You think she's crazy about me?" The younger blond asked, her voice full of hope, because even though she was quite sure that Emily did like her, she couldn't help needing some reassurance on that particular fact.

"How many times will I have to tell you?! I'm _ omniscient_!" Garcia exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air in a sign of frustration. "And besides, that's _not _the point."

"What are you implying, Pen?" JJ knew very well what her friend was talking about, but she thought it was better to play Garcia's game for now.

"Nothing," Garcia quickly said, which was enough to indicate that she _was_ implying something, but didn't want to outright say it to JJ. "I just think you should take things slowly."

"Yeah, well, I might have something to tell you about that..." JJ said, the smile in her face growing so big that she was sure she'd end up hurting her mouth or something like that.

"JJ? What have you done?" Garcia's voice was a mix between fear and curiosity, so JJ promptly began to tell her the events that took place Saturday after she left Emily's house.

_After she left Alicia and Cameron in the living room, she made a cup of coffee for Emily and herself, before they both engaged in a pleasant conversation that they could so easily fall into. She'd always been surprised by how little it took for her to allow Emily to be a part of her life. When the brunette joined the BAU, the other members of her team weren't very pleased with the addition, but JJ was immediately drawn to the new Profiler, like she simply had to get to know the other woman. Her first impression wasn't wrong; in fact, she soon realized that Emily Prentiss was one of the most unique person she'd ever met, and that with each passing day, she became more and more attached to the brunette. She should've seen from the beginning where it was heading – with all the flirting and the subtle touches – but deep inside she knew that she was afraid of what would happen once she did admit her feelings for Emily. And at that moment, she couldn't help but to feel stupid for denying herself for so long what she could have had with Emily if she just had taken the first step and reached for it._

"_Your sister is a lot like you." Emily said, as she took a sip of the coffee JJ had just handed her. "Cameron and her are really cute together."_

"_They are," JJ agreed with a smile. "Can you believe I was the last to know?"_

"_Really?" Emily asked, surprise taking over her features. "With the way you two are with each other, I could swear you'd been the first to know."_

"_I thought so too," she shrugged. "Ali said she didn't wanna tell me over the phone. I can understand, but thinking about it now, makes me wish I hadn't gone three whole months without seeing them."_

"_Then why did you?" Emily asked before she could stop herself. "I mean, I'm sorry, it's really none of my business."_

"_No, it's okay." JJ said, squeezing Emily's hand to prove that she meant her words. "It's just-- I don't know, really. I always wanted to leave East Allegheny, and I kind of hated going back there. And Alicia has school so she can't fly here all the time, so Mom and Dad have to stay there with her because they don't really think it'd be a nice idea to leave her alone, you know? Teenager and all. It just sort of happened and I never really did anything about it. Now, though, I wish I had."_

"_It's never too late to change that, JJ." Emily said, her tone soft and concerned. She didn't like to think how she'd feel if Alexis and Sophie moved to another town and didn't visit her, but she was sure it wouldn't be a nice feeling. At all. And she knew that even though JJ didn't like the town she grew up in, she _did_ miss her family. She could understand that with the job they had, the blond woman probably didn't have as much free time as she wished, but it still didn't change the fact that she could have squeezed a visit between here and there. She wouldn't judge JJ, though. Not even if she could do so, because it meant a lot to her the fact that the woman was opening up to her about that. She knew JJ wouldn't share those things with just about anybody; she liked to put up a strong face. At the same time, though, JJ thought it was pointless to try and hide things from Emily, because the brunette probably knew her better than anyone else. And if felt nice to confide in her. More than that-- it felt _right.

"_I know." JJ agreed, after she snapped out of her daze and took a sip of her coffee. "I plan on doing exactly that. I miss having them around. Maybe once Alicia graduates, I can convince them to move out here. Mom was having a fit about her coming here to live with me anyway. So maybe Ali can help me with that. Mom really can't handle saying no to both of us."_

"_I wonder _who_ can." Emily muttered under her breath, but JJ heard it somehow, and it made her smirk at the brunette._

"_What are you saying, Ms. Prentiss?" JJ teased, her tone suddenly dropping an octave, which consequentially made chills run down Emily's spine. "That if I just bat my eyelashes I can have my way with you?"_

"_I'm not-- it's not--" She took a sharp intake of breath as JJ stepped closer, almost pinning Emily to the counter, blue eyes focused on brown ones. "It's a possibility." Emily breathed._

_JJ's smirk grew wider. She didn't know what she was doing, but she just felt something pulling her towards Emily, and she figured that she was done fighting her feelings for the brunette. Emily had been completely honest with her and the least she could do was offer her the same courtesy. So if Emily wanted to run out the door after she was finished, then so be it. She wasn't going to spend another night wondering what might have been. She was done with it. She didn't know from where in her coward self this burst of confidence was coming from, but she figured she might as well get a hold of it before it was gone and use it the best way she could. And she couldn't think of a better way to use that confidence than being honest to Emily._

"_It is?" She asked, taking a step closer. She watched as Emily's eyes traveled to her mouth and she couldn't help but licking her lips in anticipation._

"_JJ?" Emily's voice was hoarse and it made incredible things to JJ's body, even if the brunette wasn't aware of that. In fact, Emily seemed a little confused and hopeful at the same time. Mostly confused, though. "What-- what are you doing?"_

"_You have a little bit of cream--" JJ explained, closing the gap between their bodies. "Here, let me help you." And before Emily could even open her mouth to say something, she felt JJ's lips on hers, and whatever remark she was coming up with got caught up in the middle of her throat._

_Emily knew that, if she ever got the chance to kiss JJ, it would never be quite as she had imagined. She figured it'd be weird, sloppy and would probably involve JJ's hand across her face once it was over, but she also thought it'd be really amazing while it lasted. She never really considered the idea that JJ would be the one initiating the kiss. And at that moment, she didn't really think that _amazing_ could even begin to describe what it felt like to have the other woman's lips pressed against hers. The kiss was tentative, just a peck that lasted longer than it would normally have, but it was enough to make Emily go weak on her knees. JJ's lips were everything she'd ever dreamed of and so much more. They were soft, and she could taste coffee mixed with cherry that she knew came from the woman's lip gloss, but that she immediately connected to JJ's mouth. Now she knew that she'd never be able to eat something cherry flavoured without remembering that kiss._

_When JJ closed the gap between their mouths, she thought that she was probably going insane and that she was about to ruin everything she had with Emily. The confidence she was feeling before immediately left her, but she just couldn't find it in herself to pull back and tell Emily that she was sorry and it would never happen again. No, she couldn't do that because the minute her lips touched Emily's, she was sure she was in heaven. She felt like she could lose herself in that kiss. JJ knew, in that moment, that she was going to do whatever it took to make Emily hers, because she didn't think she could live without kissing those lips everyday for the rest of her life. She could taste the remnants of Emily's coffee on the kiss, but there was something else that she couldn't recognize, that she just knew it was Emily. And JJ knew deep inside herself that she would never find something like that in her life, no matter how hard she looked for it. Emily was unique in each and every way._

_Their lips came apart far too quick for their liking, but JJ figured that she should at least give Emily the chance to run away if she wished to do so. She had put her cup of coffee in the counter behind Emily, but the brunette still held her own cup between them. JJ thought she could see the brunette's hands shaking, and she really thought that Emily was about to scream at her and then run away. _

"_Em--"_

"_Shh." Emily cut her off, placing her cup next to JJ's and immediately putting a hand on the back of the blonde's neck as she pulled her in for another kiss._

_This time the kiss wasn't as chaste as the first one. JJ's hands traveled to Emily's waist, and when she ran her tongue over the brunette's lips seeking for passage, the other woman didn't waste time in granting it. As soon as their tongues met, JJ couldn't help the moan that escaped her throat, and as Emily's hand tangled in her hair, she was pretty sure she'd pass out from the sheer pleasure of it. The kiss was a mix of coffee, cherry, Emily, JJ and everything that both woman so desperately craved for, and it was a while before they came apart again. JJ knew she only did so because she really needed to breathe, otherwise she was sure she could keep kissing Emily for the rest of her life._

"_Wow." Emily breathed, resting her forehead against JJ's. She wasn't sure she could form complete sentences at the moment._

"_I know," JJ agreed, pecking Emily's lips. "I've been dreaming about doing that for a long time." She confessed._

"_Really?" Emily asked before she could stop herself. She didn't want to sound so surprised, but the thought of JJ actually thinking about kissing her was unbelievable, let alone _dreaming _of it._

_JJ chuckled. "Yeah." She sighed. "You really don't look at yourself, do you? You're amazing, Em. I'd be crazy not to notice that."_

"_JJ, I-- I really don't know what to say." Emily said, feeling pretty stupid about having to admit that, but figuring that it was no use lying to JJ._

"_It's okay," the blonde smiled. "We don't have to talk about it right now. I just really needed to do that, and I couldn't wait anymore."_

"_I'm glad you did it." Emily said, playing with the hem of JJ's shirt. "I'm not sure I would have the guts to do it myself."_

"_Yeah, I figured I'd put you out of your misery." JJ tried to joke, and was secretly pleased with herself when Emily grinned at her, her eyes shining with happiness._

"_I honestly don't know what I'd do without you." Emily retorted, using the same tone, but JJ could tell that the words hid a different meaning, and she found herself nodding to Emily's affirmation. She didn't really know what she'd do without the brunette either. "I'm not sure where this leaves us, though."_

"_Let's not rush things, okay?" JJ asked, though Emily knew it was a rhetorical question. "We'll take baby steps and see where it takes us. Besides, I wouldn't want Alexis and Sophie to chase me away."_

_Emily smiled at that. "They wouldn't." _

"_How can you be so sure?" The blonde woman inquired, raising a perfect eyebrow at Emily. "From what I've heard, they've been pretty successful."_

"_They loved you." Emily said with a shrug. "And besides, I wouldn't let them. And they _do_ want me to be happy."_

"_I know they do." JJ nodded, and smiled. "I want that as well. It's why I think we should take it slowly. This is all new, and I know they--" She was cut off when Emily's lips touched hers again, and she immediately forgot what she was even talking about._

"_You were starting to ramble." Emily said, chuckling to herself. "Believe it or not, they already know something is up. Actually, because of them, Mother gave me quite a hard time on Christmas. And then you having lunch with us today, well... they know I don't usually do that."_

"_You don't?" JJ's question was nothing more than a whisper._

"_No, I don't." the brunette shrugged. "I have to protect them, Jennifer. I wouldn't bring someone in our lives unless I planned to keep them there. And from the way they gave you the third degree, I'm pretty sure they are quite aware of what you mean to me."_

"_Oh. My. God." JJ breathed, realization just dawning on her. "That was what the whole boyfriend and girlfriend thing was about it, wasn't it?"_

"_Yeah," Emily grinned. "I was sure that you'd passed the test when they asked if you could stay for dinner."_

"_They're smart." JJ declared. "Just like you."_

_Emily blushed. "Yeah, _they _are."_

_JJ closed the gap between them once again and kissed Emily one more time. She just couldn't get enough of the brunette, and even though she knew they still had a long way to go, she was sure that what she felt for Emily was stronger than anything she'd ever felt before. The kiss wasn't rushed; in fact, it seemed as if they were both trying to memorize everything they could about each others mouth, and were very glad on keeping that pace. However, as a sound coming from Emily's pockets __filled the kitchen__, JJ knew that it was time to call it a night._

"_It's Sam." Emily informed as she checked the caller ID. "Alex and Sophie are probably falling asleep and I promised I'd be there to tuck them in."_

"_It's okay," JJ said, and for the tone in her voice Emily knew she meant it. "I already kept you longer than I should. I don't want to get on their bad side."_

"_I don't think that's possible." Emily grinned and kissed JJ softly again, and started to move towards the front door, JJ close after her. "I had an_ amazing_ day. Thank you so much."_

_JJ shook her head. "No, I should be the one thanking you, Em."_

"_Bye girls!" Emily called as she walked through the living room where Alicia and Cameron were still perched on the couch. "It was nice to meet you, and in case I don't see you again before that, have a nice trip back home."_

"_Thanks Emily." they said in unison, and then Alicia threw her a wink. "It was nice meeting you too."_

"_Goodnight, Em." JJ said, placing a small peck on the older woman's lips and giving her a hug. "I'll see you Monday."_

"_Monday." Emily agreed, and left the house, the huge grin on her face matching the one plastered on JJ's._

"Okay, you _what?!"_ Garcia exclaimed into the phone, gripping her desk to prevent herself from falling into the ground. "Rewind there a little, sugar, I'm confused. What was Emily doing in your house on a Saturday night?!"

JJ smiled. "She was dropping me home." She informed the other blond matter-of-factly. "She invited me over for lunch, that turned into dinner, and then she took me home."

"She invited you over?" Garcia asked. "You mean you had lunch in her place?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I mean, Garcia." The blond woman said, shaking her head slightly, even though the computer tech couldn't see it.

"Okay, hold on a second." Before JJ could even say something the line went dead and in mere seconds Garcia burst through the door, her eyes wide with excitement. "You met _them_?!"

"If by 'them' you mean Alexis and Sophie, then yes, I certainly did." JJ confirmed, not hiding the grin that took place on her face.

"And you spent the day with them?!" Garcia was so excited that JJ was sure the other woman was about to start bouncing off the walls. It was quite amusing, if she was being honest to herself.

She nodded. "Yup."

"And then Emily took you home and you kissed her?!" Her voice rose an octave, and JJ frantically started to motion to her, telling her to keep quiet. "Sorry."

"I did. And it was amazing." JJ said, her tone a little dreamy. "God, Garcia, I'm so in love with her."

"Ohmygod, _finally!_" Garcia squeaked and moved around JJ's desk to envelope the younger Agent in a bear-hug.

"Penelope, I need to breath here." JJ said and the other woman immediately let her go, the glow in her face still in place. "I really don't get it, you were just telling me to be careful and to take things slowly... and now you're so excited that I can almost see you going around and screaming about this to everyone who'd like to hear it. Just for the record, you're _not_ allowed to do that."

Garcia slumped on one of the chairs across JJ. "I didn't know that she'd taken you to meet them." She confessed. "I didn't want you to dive head first into that before you knew what was expecting you. But the fact that she actually took you to meet them changes _everything_."

"How long have you known?"

"About the them?" JJ nodded. "Since she got here, actually. I have to run a background check on every Agent on this unit, so it was bound to show up there. Once we became friends, she allowed me to meet them. It's not something she does all the time, Jayj. Emily is beyond overprotective with those little girls."

"I know," JJ agreed with a smile. "And they're overprotective with her too."

The Tech Analyst tilted her head to the side as if she was thinking about something. "So, what happens now?" She asked her friend.

"I don't really know." JJ confessed with a shrug. "I told her we should see where this takes us, and not rush things, you know? There's too much at stake, I don't wanna screw up."

"You won't, I'm sure." Garcia comforted with a smile. "But I'll make sure to keep this to myself just in case. It's going to be hard, but I'll do it because I love you and Emily. You deserve this, Jayj. You both do."

"Thanks, Pen. I appreciate it." As soon as the words left the blond's mouth there was a knock on her door. "Come in!"

Emily entered the room, closing the door behind her and looking between both woman, an eyebrow raised. "Is there a fire or something?"

"Fire?" Garcia inquired, her voice laced with confusion. JJ was too busy staring at Emily to actually say something. She was pretty sure she was almost drooling, but Emily looked _good_. Well, she was a bit suspicious to talk about that because she always thought that the brunette was looking good, but that morning it was something out of proportions. It wasn't the clothes she was wearing, but rather the glow in her face as she talked to them. She was even more stunning than JJ could remember, and that was saying something.

"Yeah," Emily confirmed. "You ran so fast through the bullpen that I actually took a bet against Reid that you could take Flash on a race any day. And even though he swears that no one can beat Flash on a race, I'm still willing to believe that you'd give him a run for his--"

"No, Em, no fire." Penelope interrupted before the brunette could come into full contact with her inner geek self. They both knew that once that happened it was impossible to make Emily stop rambling about all sorts of things that nobody but Reid would understand. She looked between JJ and the brunette – who still had her mouth open as if she still wasn't quite finished with her ramble – and got up, deciding that it was time to leave them alone. "I came to see if JJ's camera was properly attached because something happened and I can't really see anything that happens in here..." She winked at the younger blond, and moved around Emily to leave the room. "It looks fine, though, so maybe it's something else. I'll go check it and leave you two to talk. See you later, my loves."

"Later, Pen." Emily and JJ said in unison.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Emily found herself pinned to the door, JJ's lips on hers. "Hey."

"Hey there." Emily whispered, her lips brushing against JJ's. "How was the rest of your weekend?"

"Not as amazing as the beginning of it." JJ answered in the same tone. She knew she'd never be able to find a way to thank Garcia for giving them some privacy like that. The woman truly was an amazing friend.

"I know what you mean." Emily agreed with a smile. "What was up with Garcia?"

"I called to tell her about my amazing Saturday, but there came a point in our conversation where she just _had_ to come here to either beat or hug the crap out of me, so..."

"I see," the brunette giggled. "Well, Morgan was pretty worried. And I can't really blame him."

"Sorry about that." JJ said before she kissed Emily again.

"I think the kissing is a good way to say you're sorry, but I'm not quite convinced." The brunette teased, and closed the gap between their mouths again, enjoying the feeling of JJ's soft lips moving against hers and the thrill that came from the fact that they were doing that in their workplace. "I actually wanted to ask you something."

"You did?" JJ asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah," Emily nodded. "I was wondering if you'd like to go on a date with me next Friday? If we don't have a case, of course. I've dreamed so much about that and I really wanna do things properly, so I figured that taking you on a date was the right thing to do, since I kind of already messed up things by taking you to meet the family first, which might have scared you away, but it didn't and now I really want--"

"If you'd stop rambling, I'd love to go on a date with you." The blond said, her eyes shining with excitement. She thought there wasn't anything more adorable than a rambling Emily, but if she let her, she'd never get to say anything, so she thought it was better to cut her off and just give her answer.

"Oh good." Emily breathed. "Well, Friday it is. I should let you get to work now, so I'm just gonna go back to my files and if you need anything just--"

"I'll let you know." JJ interrupted, kissing Emily one last time that morning. "I'll be thinking about you." She whispered.

"Good," Emily grinned. "I'll be thinking about you too."


End file.
